AeroSafety World April 2012

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Entire Issue
 

AeroSafety World April 2012 68 pages.

If the approach speed had been a few knots lower, if the touchdown had been a few meters shorter, if the runway had been dry and just a bit longer, if the pilots had considered a go-around a few seconds earlier, if the thrust reverser system had not malfunctioned, or if the concrete base for an approach light had not protruded from the ground off the end of the runway, the overrun accident at Germany’s Emden Aerodrome the morning of Nov. 18, 2009, might not have happened.

But it did happen. Mark Lacagnina explains the confluence of factors leading to the accident involving a Dassault Falcon 900EX. Also in the April AeroSafety World: the search for more dependable ways of locating flight data recorders when aircraft wreckage is inaccessible; an affordable, peer-to-peer safety initiative sponsored by Airports Council International; the need for pilots to have specific guidelines for deciding how much to rely on automation in various situations; and other need-to-know information. [Download PDF 7.7M]

Features
 

A Matter of Meters (Text only)

If the approach speed had been a few knots lower, if the touchdown had been a few meters shorter, if the runway had been dry and just a bit longer, if the pilots had considered a go-around a few seconds earlier, if the thrust reverser system had not malfunctioned, or if the concrete base for an approach light had not protruded from the ground off the end of the runway, the overrun accident at Germany’s Emden Aerodrome the morning of Nov. 18, 2009, might not have happened. [Download PDF 4 pages. 319K]

Breaking the Ice Jam (Text only)

Reacting to recurring incidents involving Cessna 560XL rudder jamming, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has issued an airworthiness directive requiring modifications to reduce the amount of water that can accumulate in the aft fuselage and freeze on the rudder control cables and pulleys. [Download PDF 2 pages. 216K]

Learning Exercise (Text only)

Early indications show an unprecedented nonprofit, peer-to-peer collaboration among the world’s airports making solid progress toward enhanced runway safety and the mitigation of airport-related risks. [Download PDF 4 pages. 458K]

Narrowing the Search (Text only)

Aviation industry specialists are exploring more dependable ways of locating aircraft flight recorders. Some of these alternatives involve various uses of streaming data; others focus on new methods of locating an aircraft’s black boxes under water or in other difficult terrain. [Download PDF 4 pages. 519K]

From the Top (Text only)

Senior aviation managers have the responsibility for embedding positive safety cultures in their organizations. This involves the provision of adequate resources and guidance in SMS implementation. [Download PDF 3 pages. 195K]

Save Your Changes (Text only)

Changes involving an operator’s policy, procedure, manual, service bulletin, airworthiness directive, checklist, placard, etc., intended for safety improvement, could paradoxically result in an unintended, dormant hazard. [Download PDF 1 page. 223K]

Maximum Visibility (Text Only)

Voluntarily equipping airport ground vehicles with automatic dependent surveillance–broadcast (ADS-B) transmitters is the optimal technology — in the long run — to accurately observe and identify surface vehicles in the movement area, the AC says. [Download PDF 6 pages. 425K]

**Web Exclusive** Maximum Visibility (Expanded version of original article) Text only

Smoothing Automation’s Path (Text Only)

Modern aircraft are increasingly reliant on automation, but flight crews need more guidance to determine exactly how much automation they should use for various tasks, Michel Masson, safety action coordinator for the European Aviation Safety Agency,  says. [Download PDF 3 pages. 291K]

Simple Clues (Text only)

Pilots violating standard operating procedures (SOPs) — plus poor or missing SOPs — and pilots with inadequate flying skills are insidious problems that continue to kill many. This was the opinion of several speakers at Flight Safety Foundation’s 24th European Aviation Safety Seminar in Dublin on Feb. 29–March 1. [Download PDF 3 pages. 275K]

Departments
 

President’s Message | Embracing Challenges (Text only)

On March 8, the Royal Aeronautical Society, Washington Branch, presented its Trans-Atlantic Leading Edge Award to Flight Safety Foundation President and CEO William R. Voss. Here are the remarks he made in accepting the award. [Download PDF 1 page. 106K]

Editorial Page | Short Final (Text only)

Today’s safety challenge is not the same as in past decades, when the search focused on how to fly safely. [Download PDF 1 page. 91K]

Executive’s Message | Student Membership (Text only)

Students, whether they are in college or high school, are now eligible to be a member of the Foundation for a very nominal fee, US$30. [Download PDF 1 page. 116K]

Air Mail | Letters From Our Readers (Text only)

I read with great interest the ASW cover story for December 2011–January 2012 when I saw the photograph caption, “This aircraft struck terrain while departing with the flaps and slats retracted.” I thought to myself in disbelief, “What? No takeoff warning? Again?” [Download PDF 2 pages. 186K]

Safety Calendar | Industry Events (Text only)

A listing of aviation safety-related conferences, seminars and meetings. [Download PDF 1 page. 61K]

In Brief | Safety News (Text only)

An investigation has identified high oil-feed pipe deflection loads as a significant factor in in-flight engine oil leaks on two Qantas Airways Airbus A380s, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau says. [Download PDF4 pages. 600K]

Foundation Focus | The Right Tools (Text only)

About a decade ago, the audit staff turned to the Foundation’s publications and technical specialists for help in turning the popular good-ideas CD into an organized and professional product. The result was the Aviation Department Tool Kit, a product comprising six unique CDs jam-packed with useful information and tools. [Download PDF 2 pages. 146K]

Data Link | Four Degrees of Separation (Text only)

Error containment improves as the severity of operational errors increases, according to a U.S. Federal Aviation Administration study of events involving U.S. en route air traffic controllers. [Download PDF 4 pages. 464K]

Info Scan | Pyramid Building (Text only)

Organizational safety culture, however, is a different kind of concept than technology and regulation. Compared with those, it is in some ways more elusive. [Download PDF 4 pages. 94K]

On Record | Garage In, Garbage Out (Text only)

The following information provides an awareness of problems in the hope that they can be avoided in the future. The information is based on final reports by official investigative authorities on aircraft accidents and incidents. [Download PDF 8 pages. 465K]

Smoke Fire Fumes | Selected U.S. Events

Selected Smoke, Fire and Fumes Events in the United States, November 2011–January 2012 [Download PDF 1 page. 260K]

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